In the packaging of fruit, it is necessary to provide a combination of fruit having a weight above a preselected minimum. For example, a 5-lb. bag of fruit may have a minimum desired weight of 5 lbs. 4 ounces, which will allow for shrinkage and yet exceed the minimum designated weight on the bag. Machines which are designed to grade fruit and dispense a combination of fruit close to the pre-determined weight are known.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,939,928 (Murakami) teaching a weighing system wherein a mechanism which is not specifically disclosed dispenses objects to a plurality of scales, and the weights derived from the scales are provided to an adder. An addition-code-selecting circuit selects combinations of the various weights to be added, and the absolute value of the difference between a combined weight and the desired weight is determined. This value is compared with that of all different combinations, the combination having the smallest absolute value is selected, and the combination producing that combined weight is dispensed. This system is not desirable because it is capable of producing a weight less than a predetermined weight, and if the bag must meet a minimum to comply with weight regulations, this machine could result in a violation.
A variety of other machines are known for weighing a plurality of groups of objects and for combining the groups in some fashion. These are generally either quite complicated or are unable to provide an optimum combination of groups of objects.